Friday, December 21, 2012

Webster's
Dictionary defines the word advent as
"a coming into being" (Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, Tenth
Edition). "A coming into being." That's what I'm in need of right
now. I need to slow down, to live in the moment, to appreciate the small things
-- the warmth and light of a candle flame, the tiny fingers of a newborn baby,
the quiet stillness of the dawn, the enthusiastic smiles of children. I need to
prepare my heart, to make my spirit ready for the birth of the Messiah.We
all need this time of Advent to slow down, to open our ears to God's quiet
voice, to guide us through the chaos of the consumerist culture that Christmas
has become. As we make our way through this busy season, let us allow God to
shape our minds and hearts -- to become a part of God's "coming into
being" in Jesus' birth.-- Beth
A. Richardson in Child of the Light(Upper Room Books, 2005, used with permission)#3131

Thursday, December 20, 2012

Albert
Camus once said that, "All great deeds and all great thoughts have a
ridiculous beginning. Great works are often born on a street corner or in a
restaurant's revolving door." I
suppose you could even say that the greatest deed, the greatest thought and the
greatest work had a ridiculous beginning in of all places a manger. Who would have
thought?--
Rev. Dave Wilkinson,
SOUND BITES Ministry™#3130

Wednesday, December 19, 2012

“In Him there is no darkness
at all. The night and the day are both alike.” (Kathleen Thomerson, from the hymn “I want to Walk as a Child of the
Light”)This phrase reminds me that
God permeates everything -- the night that I fear and the morning that I
welcome. God, and God’s grace, surrounds us throughout all of life -- the easy,
loving parts and the hard, difficult, scary times. God lives in both the night
and the day -- they are just alike to God. When we face times of darkness in
our personal lives, in our families, in our community or world, God moves close
to us, loving us and holding our hands even if we are not aware of it, even if
we think God is absent…When we are facing a dark
night of the soul, when we are sick or grieving, when we have hurt others or
have been hurt by them, we are not alone. The God of darkness and light stays
beside us. And the God of darkness and light sends messengers -- messengers
like you and me -- to remind us that we are not alone… We are called to be
children of the light, doers, messengers to others of God’s love and grace,
God’s comfort and forgiveness.-- Beth A.
Richardson in Child of the Light#3129

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Advent reminds me in a very
visual, powerful way that we are called to be pregnant with God. We are all
called to labor with bringing Christ into the world, not just at Advent but
throughout the year.-- Enuma Okoro, in an interview with Christianity
Today Blog for Women about her devotionalSilence and Other Surprising Invitations of Advent (Upper Room,
2012)#3128

Monday, December 17, 2012

Dear Jesus,It's a good thing You were
born at night. This world sure seems dark. I have a good eye for silver
linings. But they seem dimmer lately.These killings, Lord. These
children, Lord. Innocence violated. Raw evil demonstrated.The whole world seems on
edge. Trigger-happy. Ticked off. We hear threats of chemical weapons and
nuclear bombs. Are we one button-push away from annihilation?Your world seems a bit
darker this Christmas. But You were born in the dark, right? You came at night.
The shepherds were nightshift workers. The Wise Men followed a star. Your first
cries were heard in the shadows. To see Your face, Mary and Joseph needed a
candle flame. It was dark. Dark with Herod's jealousy. Dark with Roman
oppression. Dark with poverty. Dark with violence.Herod went on a rampage,
killing babies. Joseph took You and Your mom into Egypt. You were an immigrant before
You were a Nazarene.Oh, Lord Jesus, You entered
the dark world of Your day. Won't You enter ours? We are weary of bloodshed.
We, like the wise men, are looking for a star. We, like the shepherds, are
kneeling at a manger.This Christmas, we ask You,
heal us, help us, be born anew in us.Hopefully,

Friday, December 14, 2012

"For God so loved the
world that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him may not
perish but may have eternal life.Indeed,
God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that
the world might be saved through Him."(John 3:16-17 NRSV)The "world" that Jesus
came to save is represented in the birth stories by two groups of people who
could hardly be more varied: shepherds from the nearby hillsides and wealthy
sages from a foreign land. Farmworkers and well-connected intellectuals, one
group from the neighborhood and one who traveled from a far country. No one is
a foreigner at the manger; no one is excluded because of economic class. God
wants a full table at the heavenly banquet and is willing to look for dinner
guests in unexpected places. Our place in Christ's reign means that we are
willing to sit next to someone who appears at first to be alien to us but turns
out to be a citizen, a member with us of God's own household. Embraced by this
communion of love, we realize our call to the life of the Spirit and enjoy the
fullness of life that comes with Christ's reign of justice and peace.-- Blair Gilmer Meeks in Expecting the Unexpected
(Upper Room Books, 2006) Used with permission.#3126

Thursday, December 13, 2012

Stuff happens all the time
that makes me want to scribble God a "Dear John" letter. But I
haven't found a better option besides God. What I have found is that it is an
act of faithfulness to bring the range of human experiences before God. The
harder themes [of doubt, barrenness, pain and longing] are just as real and
significantly shape our faith and our images of God and of ourselves in
relation to God as the more pleasant ones we tend to focus on.For the most part, we do not
do a good job in Western society of sitting in places of discomfort. We do not
know how to sit with our own pain or the pain of others. As a result, we can
really miss out on deepening compassion and engagement with our communities
that could lead to more healing, in all senses of the word.-- Enuma Okoro, in an interview with Christianity
Today Blog for Women about her devotionalSilence and Other Surprising Invitations of Advent (Upper Room,
2012)#3125

Wednesday, December 12, 2012

The
grace of God means something like: Here is your life. You might never have
been, but you are because the party wouldn't have been complete without you.
Here is your world. Beautiful and terrible things happen. Don't be afraid. I am
with you. Nothing can separate us. It's for you I created the universe. I love
you.There
is only one catch. Like any other gift, the gift of grace can be yours only if
you'll reach out and take it.-- Frederick Buechner in Beyond
Words: Daily Readings
in the ABC's of Faith#3124

Tuesday, December 11, 2012

If
we are to be truly peacemakers, I think we must move beyond the notion of peace
as the absence of conflict… Peace has to do with the fullness of things, with
lion and lamb lying down together, not a world without lions.If we are to have hearts capable of the peace
of Christ, which does indeed pass all understanding, we must have hearts
capable of embracing the joy and the sorrow, the sacredness and the sin of the
world… The
infant in the manger at Bethlehem
comes with a message of peace, an announcement that all sad divisions, all the
irreconcilable pieces of our public and private lives will be brought together
in the celebration of "shalom" -- God's blessing, God's peace.This will not, I think, occur when conflict
has ceased.For creative conflict is a
necessary component of growth.Rather,
peace will reign when our forgiveness of self and others is wide and deep
enough to create new possibilities and, without the use of violence, to
transform our seeming impasses into new freedoms and joys.--
Wendy M. Wright in The Vigil: Keeping Watch in the Season of Christ's Coming
(Nashville, Tenn.: Upper Room Books, 1992)#3123

Monday, December 10, 2012

God's
astounding and radical intervention in our human history cannot be contained in
the tame and timid displays of Christmas lights, catchy slogans, or the
exchange of gifts. Advent
confronts us once again with God's unparalleled effort to communicate the
message that all humankind is embraced and held close by a God of love. Jesus
Christ has come, is present with us, and will come again in final victory when
all darkness, pain, and evil will be no more.In
Advent we begin again to try to make plain the wonderful truth of the most
extraordinary good news the world has ever heard.Soon we will join the angelic chorus in
singing, "Christ the Savior is born."--
Norman Shawchuck and Rueben P. Job in A Guide to Prayer for All Who Seek God(Nashville, Tenn.:
Upper Room Books, 2003)#3122

Friday, December 7, 2012

They were looking for a lion, He came as a Lamb, and they
missed Him. They were looking for a warrior, He came as a Peacemaker, and they
missed Him. They were looking for a king, He came as a Servant, and they missed
Him. They were looking for liberation from Rome, He submitted to the Roman stake, and
they missed Him. They were looking for a fit to their mold, He was the mold
maker, and they missed Him.What
are you looking for? Lion? Warrior? King? Liberator? What are you looking for?
They were looking for their temporal needs to be met, He came to meet their
eternal need, and they missed Him.He
came as a Lamb to be sacrificed for your sin. Will you miss Him? He came to
make peace between God and man. Will you miss Him? He came to model servanthood
for all mankind. Will you miss Him? He came that we might have true liberty. Will
you miss Him? He came to give you eternal life. Will you miss Him?When
we submit to the Lamb, we will meet the Lion. Join with the Peacemaker, and we
will meet the Warrior. Work with the Servant, and we will meet the King. Walk
with the Submitted, and we will meet the Liberator. Concern ourselves with the
eternal, and we will have the temporal.If
Jesus is not fitting into the mold you have, then come to the Mold Maker and
get a new one. Submit to His plan for your life and you will see the eternal need
met first; then all the other things you have need of will be taken care of as
well. (See Matthew 6:33)--
Unknown#3121

Thursday, December 6, 2012

Advent reminds us that as
Christians, we follow a different understanding of time than the rest of the
world. One gift of deepening our Advent observance is in its drastically
different pace to the holiday culture. Advent can teach us to honor the seasons
of our lives in which life doesn't happen at the pace we desire. We can all
relate to that at some point.-- Enuma Okoro, in an interview with Christianity
Today Blog for Women about her devotionalSilence and Other Surprising Invitations of Advent (Upper Room,
2012)#3120

Tuesday, December 4, 2012

The promises we anticipate
during Advent are promises that the world as we know it will be
overturned."Prepare the way!"
we are exhorted. "Make straight His paths."We are not only to await the Coming in joyful
anticipation, we are to participate in it as well…All of creation is embarked
on that slow journey homeward to its final consummation.And humankind, as "homo adorans,"
of all the creatures the one designed to worship and adore, is called to
consciously chart and pilot that movement home.--
Wendy M. Wright in The Vigil: Keeping Watch in the Season of Christ's Coming
(Nashville, Tenn.: Upper Room Books, 1992)#3118

Thursday, November 29, 2012

One
of the things that many great artists will tell you is that they often believe
their art comes from some place other than themself. Painters will talk of how
the painting somehow seems to paint itself. Sculptors talk of freeing the
sculpture from within the rock where it's been imprisoned. Writers talk of
being surprised at how a story turns out, at where the characters end up going.
And many, many artists are certain that it is God's Spirit that guides their
hands as they work. Great art, like great spirituality, involves trusting what
God can do, not just what we can. -- Eric Folkerth, Copyright
2000. All Rights Reserved. (Used with Permission)#3115

Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Faith is the willingness to
look foolish. Noah looked foolish building a boat in the middle of the desert.
The Israelite army looked foolish marching around Jericho blowing trumpets. A shepherd boy
named David looked foolish charging a giant with a slingshot. The Magi looked
foolish tracking a star to Timbuktu.
Peter looked foolish getting out of a boat in the middle of the Sea of Galilee. And Jesus looked foolish wearing a crown
of thorns. But the results speak for themselves. Noah was saved from the flood;
the walls came tumbling down; David defeated Goliath; the Magi discovered the
Messiah; Peter walked on water; and Jesus was crowned King of kings.-- Mark Batterson in The Circle Maker#3114

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

As
long as you are tangled in wrong and revenge, blow and counterblow, aggression
and defense, you will be constantly drawn into fresh wrong... Only forgiveness
frees us from the injustice of others. -- Theologian Romano
Guardini in The Lord#3113

Monday, November 26, 2012

SURRENDER… This isn’t a word
that instantly evokes joy, yet it’s the very thing that produces it. Of course,
we’re not talking about just any sort of surrender, we are talking about
abandoning self and taking our worldly ambitions, our need for fame, and even
the things we are good at and laying them at the foot of the cross of Jesus
Christ. Because Jesus Christ alone is on the throne! He is already on the
throne… whether we surrender or not. But when we surrender and He is exalted in
our lives, then joy abounds.

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Gratitude
goes beyond the "mine" and the "thine" and claims the truth
that all of life is a pure gift. In the past I always thought of gratitude as a
spontaneous response to the awareness of gifts received, but now I realize that
gratitude can also be lived as a discipline. The discipline of gratitude is the
explicit effort to acknowledge that all I am and have is given to me as a gift
of love, a gift celebrated with joy.-- Henri J. Nouwen#3111

Tuesday, November 20, 2012

Each
of us can look back upon someone who made a great difference in our lives,
someone whose wisdom or simple acts of caring made an impression upon us. In
all likelihood, it was someone who sought no recognition for their deed, other
than the joy of knowing that, by their hand, another’s life had been made better.– Stephen M. Wolf, quoted
in Gratitude, compiled by Dan ZadraThis Thanksgiving take the opportunity
to thank them.#3110

Monday, November 19, 2012

"[One]
winter I sat in Army fatigues somewhere near Anniston, Alabama,
eating my supper out of a mess kit. The infantry training battalion that I had
been assigned to was on bivouac. There was a cold drizzle, and everything was
mud. The sun had gone down.I
was still hungry when I finished and noticed that a man nearby had something
left over that he was not going to eat. It was a turnip, and when I asked him
if I could have it, he tossed it over to me. I missed the catch, the turnip
fell to the ground, but I wanted it so badly that I picked it up and started
eating it anyway, mud and all.And
then, as I ate it, time deepened and slowed down again. With a lurch of the
heart that is real to me still, I saw suddenly, almost as if from beyond time
altogether, that not only was the turnip good, but the mud was good too, even
the drizzle and cold were good, even the Army that I had dreaded for months.Sitting
there in the Alabama winter with my mouth full of cold turnip and mud, I could
see at least for a moment how if you ever took truly to heart the ultimate
goodness and joy of things, even at their bleakest, the need to praise someone
or something for it would be so great that you might even have to go out and
speak of it to the birds of the air. -- Frederick Buechner in The
Sacred Journey#3109

Friday, November 16, 2012

Biblical
scholar Frederick Dale Bruner says, "The Christian faith is bi-polar.
Disciples live their life between worship and doubt, trusting and questioning,
hoping and worrying."Then Jesus
gives the disciples what is called the Great Commission, sends them out to be
His agents in the world. Jesus looks at these worshiping doubters and says:
"You go! You doubters, go. You risk your lives for Me. You change your
world for Me. And you will find as you go that it is your own doubts that are
healed. You doubters are included, too."Disciples are
not people who never doubt. They doubt and worship. They doubt and serve. They
doubt and help each other with their doubts. They doubt and practice
faithfulness. They doubt and wait for their doubt one day to be turned to
knowing. -- John
Ortberg in Faith & Doubt#3108

Thursday, November 15, 2012

When Peter
asked Jesus if he should forgive others as many as seven times, Jesus answered,
"not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times" (Matthew 18:22). Obviously Jesus was not saying mark
off each forgiveness up to seventy-seven and then stop forgiving. He was wiping
out all calculated response both to ourselves and to others. He threw a
legalism of checks and balances out the window. He invited us to a wider place,
a freer air, where compassion and mercy are no longer a matter of arithmetic.But until we
let God release us, we cannot release ourselves or others. We remain in that
condition of self-judgment, a judgment of others, that spiritual prison,
anxiously counting up those pennies! God longs to
enter these prisons of ours, throw open the doors, bring us into…
"grace" -- the realm of free gifting -- not to earn love but because
we are already loved. -- Flora
Slosson Wuellner in Forgiveness, the Passionate Journey(Nashville, Tenn.:
Upper Room Books, 2001)#3107

Wednesday, November 14, 2012

"I have
fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained
faithful." (2 Timothy 4:7 NLT)Do not
confuse motion and progress. A rocking horse keeps moving but does not make any
progress. -- Alfred
A. Montapert#3106

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

"[Jesus]
was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen --
by us who ate and drank with Him after He rose from the dead. He commanded us
to preach to the people and to testify that He is the one whom God appointed as
judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify about Him that
everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins through His
name." (Acts 10:41-43 NIV)Of all I wish
to say, this is the sum; my brethren, preach Christ, always and evermore. He is
the whole gospel. His person, offices, and work must be our one great,
all-comprehending theme. The world needs still to be told of its Saviour, and
of the way to reach Him. --
Charles Spurgeon in Lectures to My Students#3105

Monday, November 12, 2012

It s in our nature to seek shelter from a storm, whether atmospheric or economic. We read many instances in the Old Testament in which famine drove people to turn back to God. And… in the midst of… economic crisis, we read reports of increasing attendance at many congregations.

Times of trouble also cause people to shift their spending. Extravagant luxuries give way to more practical, generic items -- the simple basics. That shift in spending reminds us of Jesus' words, "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth… but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven… For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." (Matthew 6:19-21)

Economic crisis can lead people to reassess their values, changing their focus to family, friends, and a more meaningful purpose in life. As people come back to the basics of the soul… stand ready to provide the aid and comfort… for all those seeking refuge along the Christian journey. "For you have been a refuge to the poor, a refuge to the needy in their distress, a shelter from the rainstorm, and a shade from the heat." (Isaiah 25:4)

-- from Cokesbury: Resources for the Christian Journey, 2009-2010 Catalogue

Friday, November 9, 2012

No nation,
and few individuals, are really brought into [God's] camp by the historical
study of the biography of Jesus, simply as biography. Indeed, materials
for a full biography have been withheld from [us]. The earliest converts
were converted by a single historical fact (the Resurrection) and a single
theological doctrine (the Redemption) operating on a sense of win which they
already had... The "Gospels" came later and were written not to
make Christians but to edify Christians already made. -- C. S.
Lewis (1898-1963) in The Screwtape Letters#3103

Monday, November 5, 2012

I
met those of our society who had votes in the ensuing election, and advised
them, 1. To vote, without fee or reward, for the person they judged most
worthy: 2. To speak no evil of the person they voted against: And 3. To take
care their spirits were not sharpened against those that voted on the other
side.-- John Wesley, October 6,
1774.#3102

Friday, November 2, 2012

One of the hallmarks of our
tendency to sin is that we feel the need to criticize, we take pleasure in
gossiping, and we feel qualified to make judgments, often with very little
information.We slander others for a host
of reasons. Perhaps we’re jealous of another’s success. Maybe we’re just
insecure. But we also find a tendency to speak ill of others when they disagree
with our way of seeing the world. Rather than trying to fully understand why
they believe what they believe,and
being open to the possibility that we are wrong, we feel threatened by their
convictions. Because talking with those who disagree with us face-to-face about
why we think they are wrong might be a bit too threatening, and would require
that we listen to their views and arguments, we find it easier to criticize
them where it is safe, among friends or like-minded people, on our blogs, or
via e-mail.We say things to our friends
about these persons we would never say to them face-to-face. We judge their
motives and their deeds. Most of us have committed this sin. We have all
wounded others by our words. We have misrepresented them, spoken out of turn,
and judged them without really taking the time to understand them.-- Adam Hamilton in Seeing Gray in a World of
Black and White#3101

Thursday, November 1, 2012

Great
men and women have always an appeal; some are admirable and some not -- and few
are imitable. It is the mark of a saint that he [or she] fulfills the highest
ideal given to [humankind], and is at the same time a friend and an
inspiration. They tell us what is possible for us, whether we have one talent
or ten, whether we live in sorrow or joy, in days of menace or in a time of
hope. They combine the almost impossible, weakness with strength, darkness with
joy, self-denial with profound humanity and affection. Unlike so many other
distinguished [people], in science, literature and statesmanship, they remain
ever contemporary in that they reveal the everlasting source of happiness, the
secret of how to turn the common into what is perfect and unique. Each...
manages to find the true Cross, the emblem of life and hope. -- Philip Caraman in Saints
and Ourselves#3100

Wednesday, October 31, 2012

Christians have infinite
how-to manuals on marriage, money, sex, and everything else, but I don't see
much of what I read in 1 Corinthians 7, which speaks of sitting lightly with
what we have with a sense of detachment. Money, for example, is God's, not ours.
We didn't bring our pink Cadillac into the world, and we can't take it with us
to the new kingdom, even if we get buried with it. We are simply stewards of
God's property, which should change the whole way we look at the concept of
ownership and how it relates to the mission of the church or evangelism.-- Ben Witherington III in Christianity Today,
October 15, 2012#3099

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

John Wesley wrote
extensively on the use of money, the danger of riches, and the importance of
giving. For Wesley, all things belong to God. This changes how we perceive the
manner by which we earn money and save money, causing us to do so in
appropriate ways. And in changes how we spend
money, making us more responsible, and shapes how we give money. Wesley valued industrious and productive work, but he
believed that acquiring money does not provide a profound enough life purpose
to sustain the human spirit. When he wrote, "Earn all you can, save all
you can, and give all you can," he drew an unbreakable link between
acquisition and generosity, inviting us to use our material wealth to deepen
our relationship with God and to increase our positive impact for God's
purposes.-- Robert Schnase inFive Practices of Fruitful Living#3098

Monday, October 29, 2012

Our
beliefs are not just estimates of probabilities. They are also the instruments
that guide our actions.Let's
say you manage the Los Angeles Dodgers. It's World Series time—you against the
Oakland Athletics. It's the ninth inning, and you're one run behind with one
man on base and two outs. The world's greatest relief pitcher is on the mound.
You have two pinch hitters; both of them bat .250. One of them says, "I
will probably make an out. There's a three out of four chance I will lose the
battle. But at least I will not allow my emotions to cloud my thinking. I will
acknowledge the probability of my failure calmly and clearly." The other
guy says, "I believe I will get a hit. I have a deep conviction this is my
day."Who do you send to the
plate? Would it be more rational to send up the logic chopper who thinks
he will fail? Wouldn't it make more sense to call on Kirk Gibson with his five
o'clock shadow and his gimpy knee and his swaggering conviction that he is
destined for immortality? You would send the pinch hitter who has all the confidence
he could muster. There are reasons for faith that go beyond mere
evidence. (If you're not a baseball fan, note that Kirk Gibson was a badly
injured power-hitting Los Angeles outfielder who in 1988 produced the greatest
World Series moments of all time and forever convinced Dodger fans that God not
only exists but is in fact a Dodger.) -- John Ortberg in Faith
& Doubt#3097

Friday, October 26, 2012

NOTE: October is Clergy Appreciation Month.
God speaks about appreciating our clergy in Hebrews 13:7, “Appreciate your
pastoral leaders who gave you the Word of God. Take a good look at the way they
live, and let their faithfulness instruct you, as well as their truthfulness.”
(The Message).Your pastor, priest, or ordained
deacon is a special person.He or she is
a leader, a spiritual guide and a partner in ministry. Celebrate their ministry
by giving them the gift of SOUND BITES. Many pastoral leaders already receive
SOUND BITES and appreciate the insights from the daily quotes.

Thursday, October 25, 2012

In 21ST Century Christian
Magazine a mother told this story: Our 3- year-old daughter was in the
habit of giving half of her 2 quarter allowance to God each week. One Sunday we
were out of town, so the next Sunday, we gave her an extra quarter to teach her
about “making up” our giving when we miss. She said, “Oh, good, I’ll give one
for God and one for Jesus.” We thought that was cute and didn’t think more
about it until the following Sunday. When it was back to the regular allowance
and she had only one quarter for the contribution, she started crying. We asked
her what was wrong and she said, “Where’s the quarter for Jesus?” Needless to
say, she got an immediate raise in her allowance! We are waiting to see what
happens when she finds out about the Holy Spirit.That family was faithfully
teaching their daughter a great truth: that giving was an act of worship.-- Jeff Strite in a sermon entitled "Giving as
an Act of Worship"#3095

Wednesday, October 24, 2012

Bible
teacher E. Stanley Jones told the story of a missionary who got lost in an
African jungle.There was nothing around
him but thick bush and a few cleared spaces.He came upon a local village and asked one of the men if he could lead
him out of the jungle.When the native
agreed, the missionary said, "Well, show me the way."The African man responded, "Walk."So they walked and hacked their way through
unmarked jungle for more than an hour.The missionary began to get worried."Are you sure this is the right way?Where is the path?"The man said, "Friend, in this place
there is no path.I am the path."It
is a jungle out there -- from pop culture to pop psychology, the path of life
is overgrown with too many opinions and too little time.It's hard to see the forest for the
trees.We need clear direction.Jesus said, "I am the light of the
world.He who follows Me shall not walk
in darkness, but have the light of life" (John 8:12).Jesus walked in His Father's footsteps,
illuminating a path for others who desire to find their way.--
Lenya Heitzig and Penny Pierce Rose in Pathway to God's Treasure:
Ephesians#3094

Tuesday, October 23, 2012

You
have been given responsibility for decision making. It is a large
responsibility, and the issues are complex and seldom clearly one way or the
other. Even when we have gathered all the facts and looked at and listened to
all the evidence, the answer may still be unclear. We bring our best thoughts
and all of our previous experiences to the decision making process, and still
we find that prejudice, half truths, insufficient evidence, and lack of wisdom
leave us uncertain about God's way in the matter.At
times like this we long for the assurance of God's presence with us. We yearn
to ask Jesus, who always reflected God's will, what our decision should be,
what really is God's will in this matter. We would seek to know how we can
discern that our decisions are not our own, not where the popular opinion is,
not what is easy or cheap, not even what will please the most persons or defeat
someone we don't like. Rather, one might ask, “What is God's will? What does
God desire around this concern I have? What decision would I make if I were to
block out all other interests and seek to please only God?”--
Reuben P. Job in A Guide to Spiritual Discernment#3093

Monday, October 22, 2012

We
know that anything we do repeatedly shapes who we are.In the spiritual life we call such
intentional repetitive practices disciplines.But what about the things around us that we
see repeatedly?Does our environment
shape us?Does the geography that we
live in shape our spiritual lives?Did
the rolling hills of southern Indiana that I
grew up in shape my soul differently than that of someone who grew up in the
open spaces of eastern Montana or even of
southern Illinois?And what about urban spaces -- tall buildings
and bus fumes, parks with statues and pleasant streets, dark alleyways and
dingy houses, subways and spaghetti-like highway exchanges?And
what about these "special places" where God's presence was especially
near?In your life is there such a place
(or places) -- maybe a campground, a church sanctuary, a mountain view, a cityscape, a beach, or a
simple clearing in the woods?One such
holy place for me is the Boundary Waters Canoe Area of northern Minnesota.An incredibly beautiful area of lakes, trees,
boulders, sky views, and portages, it always invites me to praise and prayer
and to a different level of closeness to God than does my everyday life.Its features have embedded themselves into my
soul.Is there any place that works this
way for you?-- Susan W.
N. Ruach in Leading from the Center, Winter 2003#3092

Friday, October 19, 2012

Genuine
fellowship is based on the concept of giving to and receiving from other
Christians. You can share with others whatever God has given you --
forgiveness, possessions, love, His Word, and many other things. God gives
fellowship for the purpose of mutual encouragement and growth. He wants
Christians to live in unity and harmony with one another. To help us understand
how believers are related, God uses the analogy of the body. Jesus Christ is
the Head of the body, which is comprised of all believers. All Christians
throughout the world belong to Christ's body, but it is important for you to
recognize how God wants you to relate to a smaller, specific group of
believers. This smaller group is for the purpose of instruction, sharing,
worship, and service. God has given spiritual leaders to help you mature in
Christ and to become effective in the ministry.-- from Growing Strong in
God's Family#3091

Thursday, October 18, 2012

"You
shall follow the Lord your God and fear Him; and you shall keep His commandments,
listen to His voice, serve Him, and cling to Him." (Deuteronomy 13:4 NASB)God
is our true Friend, who always gives us the counsel and comfort we need.Our danger lies in resisting Him; so it is
essential that we acquire the habit of hearkening to His voice, or keeping
silence within, and listening so as to lose nothing of what He says to us.-- Francois Fenelon#3090

Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Many
people are looking for an ear that will listen.They do not find it among [some] Christians, because these Christians
are talking where they should be listening.But he who can no longer listen to his brother will soon be no longer
listening to God, either; he will be doing nothing but prattle in the presence
of God, too.This is the beginning of
the death of the spiritual life, and in the end there will be nothing left but
spiritual chatter and clerical condescension arrayed in pious words... never
really speaking to others.--
Dietrich Bonhoeffer in Life Together#3089

Tuesday, October 16, 2012

Before beginning to read the Scriptures it is beneficial to request God to enlarge one's spiritual perception of them as one reads. This He will do by His Spirit. It is the surest way to understand both what is being read and how to apply it to our lives... When one is extremely serious about delving into the Scriptures it is remarkable how they do indeed come alive. They become very gripping and fascinating. Their truth proves to be inexhaustible and provides enormous pleasure and satisfaction to the spirit.

-- W. Phillip Keller in SERENITY: Finding God Again For The First Time

Monday, October 15, 2012

"For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope. May the God who gives endurance and encouragement give you the same attitude of mind toward each other that Christ Jesus had, so that with one mind and one voice you may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." (Romans 15:4-6 NIV)

Whenever you're in conflict with someone, there is one factor that can make the difference between damaging your relationship and deepening it. The factor is attitude.

Friday, October 12, 2012

"All Scripture is inspired
by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is
wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what
is right."(2 Timothy 3:16 NLT)Billy Graham long ago made his
peace with the Bible. When he was a young man casting about in the brambles of
academe, he had a crisis of confidence brought on by conflicting biblical
interpretation. "'Oh God! There are many things in this book I do not
understand ... There are many seeming contradictions. There are some areas that
do not seem to correlate with modern science,'" he recounts praying one
evening in Just As I Am. But then, "At last the Holy Spirit freed
me to say it. 'Father, I am going to accept this as Thy Word -- by faith! I'm
going to allow faith to go beyond my intellectual questions and doubts, and I
will believe this to be Your inspired Word.'"-- David Rubien#3086

Thursday, October 11, 2012

Waiting on the Lord requires
patient trust.Will I trust that God has
good reasons for saying "wait"?Will I remember that things look different to God because he views
things from an eternal perspective? . . . The story goes that an economist
once read these words and got very excited. "Lord -- is it true that a
thousand years for us is just like a minute to you?""Yes.""Then a million dollars to
us must just be a penny to you.""Yes.""Lord, would you give me
one of those pennies?""All right.Wait here a minute."Too often we want God's
resources, but we do not want his timing.We want the penny, but not the minute.We forget that His work in us while we wait is as important as what it
is we think we are waiting for.Waiting
means that we give God the benefit of the doubt that He knows what He is doing.
It may be patient trust -- trust
that is willing to wait again and again day after day.-- John Ortberg in If You
Want to Walk on Water, You've Got to Get Out of the Boat#3085

Wednesday, October 10, 2012

"And
David said, 'The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the
paw of the bear, He will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine [giant].'”
(1 Samuel 17:37)Giants.
We must face them. Yet we need not face them alone. Focus first, and most, on
God. The times David did, giants fell. The days he didn't, David did…Focus
on giants -- you stumble.Focus
on God -- your giants tumble.Lift
your eyes. Giant-slayer. The God who made a miracle out of David stands ready
to make one out of you.-- Max Lucado in Facing
Your Giants#3084

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Welcome to SOUND BITES

By David T. Wilkinson

Over the years I have collected quotes that pertain to the Christian faith and life in general. As I have read or studied what others have written, I have been struck by the profound thought that is captured in their few short words. These quotes have been shared through SOUND BITES Ministry™ , a five-day-a-week inspirational e-mail ministry, and now are shared through this blog as well. You will also find us on Facebook by clicking SOUND BITES Ministry on Facebook.

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How SOUND BITES came to be

During Lent 1999 God prompted me to think about a new idea as to how I might share these thoughts with a broader audience. At the same time, our family was experiencing the first anniversary of the death of our son, Dustin, who died at the age of sixteen from a brain tumor. So, beginning on that anniversary, March 29, 1999 we began an e-mail ministry in memory of Dustin that we call SOUND BITES: Something to chew on that is good for the soul™. Five days a week, Monday through Friday, I share one of these quotes with subscribers. Hopefully recipients find something of faith and life to think about and chew on, which feeds their soul and helps them grow spiritually. Since its inception, over 4200 daily quotes have been sent out. The subscriber list continues to grow numerically and geographically with subscribers in every state in the U.S., and also in Canada, Mexico, and numerous other countries around the world. Currently close to 2000 subscribers receive SOUND BITES directly via e-mail and many others second hand. Now through Facebook, Twitter and this blog we expand our outreach even more. A number of years ago we had folks share how GOD has used our SOUND BITES Ministry™ to minister them. To read their comments click 13th Anniversary Comments.